Removable threshold or door-sill and storm-protector.



'PAYTENTEDYFEB. 24, 1903.

; Noi 721,510;

S. W. FUNK REMOVABLE THRESHOLD OR DOOR SILL AND STORM. PROTECTOR.

' APPLICATION FILED 0012?, 1902.

no momgn.

, UNITE STATES P TENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL wfFUNK, or SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA.

REMOYABL EIHBESHOLD R DOQR-SILL AND STORM-PROTECTOR,

'SPEGHICATION forming part of Letters P Application filed 0ctober 2'7, r902. sem nonzasvo. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern;- i

Be it known that I, SAMUEL W. FUNK, a

citizen of theUnited States, residing at- Santa Ana, in the county of Orange and State of California, have invented a new and useful Reing from the outside doors of a house to the inside and also to prevent cold air fromlcir culating from room to room under the inside doors. descends, there is a constant circulation of coldair passing under the doors from the cold rooms and from theopenairinto the warmer rooms. der the doors into the *common living-rooms is not only very unpleasant, but it is unhealthful, especially to the female sex; since it has a tendencyto keep the feet and lower limbs cold. I have also demonstrated that by using my invention, which makes the passage under the door perfectly air and water tight, much less fuel is needed to 'keep a room comfortable. The temperature is'kept more even from thebottom-to the top of a room. In a few minutes the temperature at the bottom of the room'becomes several degrees warmer after using this combination threshold. It is quite commonin cold weather to use clothes, &c., at the bottom of doors to prevent storm and cold air from passing; but this is inconvenient and inefficient.

. The second object of my invention is to pro vide a threshold or-door-sill, neat in appear ance,that can be removed easily and instantly for convenience in sweeping and scrubbing. floors, which is accomplished in my invention. This threshold" can be removed instantly by pressing with the: fingers on a spring attached to the side of the door casing or jamb and pick the combination threshold from its place, andit can be replaced without touching the saidspring by placingthe metal pin at one end of said threshold into its respective fixtureand simply press the opposite end downward until the other metal pin enters the other fixture, which is an opening at the bottom end of the spring, as shown Since warm air ascends and cold air- Eig. II is'a perspective view of the threshold This cold air and storm passing unattentive. 721,510, dated February 2 4, 190

to a house in sweeping and scrubbing. It is very inconvenient to sweep and scrub over about'one inch stationary threshold. This threshold can, if desired, be removed during the summer season from-all inside-doors, and thus be a saving on the wear of said threshold and also be morev convenient to have no threshold to the inside doors whenuot needed.

invention.

Figure. I is a perspective view of'a doorframe and the threshold attached to the fixdoor casings 6 6, with the door standing open.

disconnected from its place, showing rubber tubing or elastic 0, held inplace by two pieces of material 61 d, and plates 6 e for holding ma-' terial d 61 together. Fig. III is an end view of said threshold with one. of. connectingplates e e removed. Fig. I;V- is a disconnected perspective View of casings 6 6, showing fixtures 3 and 4. Fig. V is a view'of a door and the bottom slightly beveled.

' l 1 represent the inner-sides of material d d, carved in an oval or V shape, 'so as to hold rubber tubing 0 in place, also to allow rubber or elastic to give and spread horizontally as much as is necessary when pressed upon by the bottom of the door. The bottom edge 7 of the door, which first comes in contact 'with tubing o, may-be slightly rounded and the bottom 8 beveled sufficiently to allow a gradualpressure upon elastic 0 when closing the door, as showni in' Fig.V. The outer edges of material 01 d are rounded at th e'top; The plates e e are made so as to suitably. come in contact with the door-stops 5 5 and casings 6 6,

plates e e about opposite the center of the ends of rubber tubing a, project about oneeighth of an inch, so as to enter'suitable open ings in fixtures 3 and 4, fastened tothe doorcasings 6 6, thus holding said threshold firmly in place. meta-l about one-half by one'inch containing a round opening, so as to snugly fit one of pins 2 2, the plate being countersunk and nailed to the casing. Fixture 4 can be made of springbrass about one-half by three inches, contain in thejdrawings. This is a greatconvenience The accompanying drawings illustrate my tures 3 and 4, fastened to the sides of the with one edge of the bottom slightly rounded as seen in Fig.1, The metal pins 2 2, riveted to g Fixture 3 is a simplepiece" of sheet ing a round opening at the lower end to also snugly fit one of pins 2 2 and nailed at its top end to the casing, a groove being cut into the casing the depth of the thickness of the spring at the top and about one-fourth of an inch deep at the bottom end of the spring, the depth decreasing to within about one-half inch of the top of said spring, so that spring 4 when fastened to the casing is flush at its top with said casing and projecting slightly at the bottom. The depth of the groove allows spring 4 to be pressed in sufficiently for one of pins2 2 to enter the opening at bottom of said spring by pressing downward on the said threshold. Also the depth of said groove allows the spring or fixture 4: to be pressed back by the finger sufficiently to disconnect, and thus the threshold can be removed. To put the threshold in place, one of pins 2 2 is placed into fixture 3, and the opposite end of the threshold is pressed down ward, the shoulder part of plate e following the door-stop until the other pin 2 2 enters fixture 4. One of the pieces of material (Z d is made shorter, so as to fit between the door-stops 5 5, and the other piece longer, so as to fit between the casings 6 6, and plates e e made with an offset to fit ends of material (1 d. The rubber tubing or elastic 0 projects about one thirty-second of an inch below and about three-sixteen ths of an inch above material d d.

The tubing or elastic a can be common rubber hose or tubing,if desired. However, the smoother and more elastic the tubing the less pressure is required by the bottom edge of the door to make a close air-tight fit. The tubing 0 can easily be removed and another replaced without removing plates e e from ends of material at d, if it should need replacing before material (I d is worn out.

When the floor is not smooth and where there are cracks, the surface should be planed smooth and the cracks filled with putty or some other suitable material in line where rubber c is supposed to come in contact with the floor. I

Now, having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a removable threshold and storm-protector, the combination of rubber tubing or holding said threshold firmly in place, as set forth and for the purpose specified.

2. In a removable threshold and storm-protector, the combination of rubber tubing or elastic held in place by material either made of wood or metal, and said elastic or tubing being pressed in close contact with the floor and the bottom edge of the door by the 010s ing of said door, and at each end of said threshold a metal pin fastened and projecting sufficiently so as to enter suitable fixtures countersunk and fastened to the door casings or jambs, one of said fixtures being a spring with a suitable opening near the lower end to receive one of said metal pins, and a groove in the casing to allow the lower part of said spring-fixture to be pressed inward, so as to permit of easy attachment and removal of said combination-threshold and also to hold said threshold firmly in place, all substantially as set forth and for the purpose specified.

SAMUEL W. FUNK. Witnesses:

H. A. FUNK, F. H. SMITH. 

